21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch sent an email to friends saying that in light of the neo-Nazi protests and violence in Charlottesville over the weekend, he and his wife would be making a $1 million donation to the Anti-Defamation League.

In the note, Murdoch is also quite critical of Pres. Trump’s response to the atrocities. His father, of course, is Fox News executive chairman and acting CEO Rupert Murdoch, who reportedly is something of an informal adviser to the president. Trump and the elder Murdoch have known each other for years, and Murdoch’s network is Trump’s media outlet of choice.

Pres. Trump and Rupert Murdoch had dinner on Aug. 1, the day after Trump fired former White House comms director Anthony Scaramucci, who was once a Fox News contributor and Fox Business host.

I’m writing to you in a personal capacity, as a concerned citizen and a father. It has not been my habit to widely offer running commentary on current affairs, nor to presume to weigh in on the events of a given day save those that might be of particular or specific concern to 21CF and my colleagues. But what we watched this last week in Charlottesville and the reaction to it by the President of the United States concern all of us as Americans and free people.

These events remind us all why vigilance against hate and bigotry is an eternal obligation — a necessary discipline for the preservation of our way of life and our ideals. The presence of hate in our society was appallingly laid bare as we watched swastikas brandished on the streets of Charlottesville and acts of brutal terrorism and violence perpetrated by a racist mob. I can’t even believe I have to write this: standing up to Nazis is essential; there are no good Nazis. Or Klansmen, or terrorists. Democrats, Republicans, and others must all agree on this, and it compromises nothing for them to do so.

Diverse storytellers, and stories, can make a difference, and that diversity, around the world, is a crucial strength and an animating force in my business. Often times not everyone agrees with the stories and positions that emerge from this, and that can be difficult. Certainly no company can be perfect. But I’m proud of the powerful art that can emerge, and I’m grateful to all of my colleagues who make this happen. From the potent and compelling narrative of “12 Years a Slave”, to the streets of Pakistan and the bravery of an extraordinary young woman that we saw in “He Named Me Malala”, to name just a few, we’ve never been afraid to help storytellers and artists say important things – hard things, too.

To further demonstrate our commitment, Kathryn and I are donating 1 million dollars to the Anti-Defamation League, and I encourage you to give what you think is right as well. We hardly ever talk about our charitable giving, but in this case I wanted to tell you and encourage you to be generous too. Many of you are supporters of the Anti-Defamation League already – now is a great time to give more. The ADL is an extraordinary force for vigilance and strength in the face of bigotry – you can learn more here:https://www.adl.org.

My very best to you and with all my gratitude,

JRM

The son is said to be far more progressive than his father, but one wonders if criticism by the head of Fox News’s parent company will elicit a response from Pres. Trump via social media.

Stay tuned.

]]>http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/21st-century-fox-ceo-james-murdoch-rebukes-pres-trumps-response-to-charlottesville/338440/feed0Carol Costello is Back, And She’s Not Messing Aroundhttp://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/carol-costello-is-back-and-shes-not-messing-around/338337
http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/carol-costello-is-back-and-shes-not-messing-around/338337#respondFri, 18 Aug 2017 00:30:03 +0000http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/?p=338337Carol Costello is returning to cable news, and she’s very excited. She thinks you should be too.

Her new HLN show, Across America, premieres this coming Monday, and will broadcast from Los Angeles weekdays from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET.

Here’s what else the veteran TV newser had to say about the new show, a revamped HLN, and her thoughts on a certain NY-LA rivalry.

TVNewser: Tell us about Across America with Carol Costello.

Costello: I really want my show to be down to Earth, unpretentious. I want to be in touch with actual people who live in the United States, and not a bunch of talking heads. I want to be totally transparent. My show will be where you go to see what’s happening right at this moment, and also to examine issues instead of talking about the political game.

TVNewser: Talk about the HLN relaunch as you understand it, and how the network’s news coverage differs from what others are doing.

I think HLN is really striving to be the place that people go for news that actually affects their lives directly. I think the other networks are just talking about the political game, they’re into political gamesmanship and that’s all they talk about. We’re going to be something different. We’re going to talk about politics because it’s part of the news too, but we’re going to go deeper. We’re going to talk about issues that really affect people. For instance, Trump rolled out his infrastructure package, but then he said all that stuff about the Confederate monuments and the demonstrations in Charlottesville. Well, lost in all of that was this infrastructure package that actually was pretty interesting. Unfortunately, no one seems interested in it anymore. We are going to delve into that too, in addition to just talking about the sexy stuff. We’re going to the stuff that’s not so sexy, but does affect people’s lives and is the reason people voted for the man.

TVNewser: Across America was supposed to premiere in April. Then June. It’s finally premiering on Monday. Why the delay?

Oh gosh, I wish I could answer that question because I’ve been dying to get on the air! I think it was just the world of CNN, HLN and all of the other networks under that umbrella. It’s just a big, bureaucratic place. Plus, we wanted to get the show exactly right. We wanted to hire exactly the right people. I had to assemble a really strong team because I’ve never done this before. I have never played a part in creating a team, creating a show and coming up with a strategy, and that takes a while. I think we might have been a little overzealous. So, in order to hire the right people we wanted, it just took longer than we thought.

TVNewser: You were at CNN for 15 years, and have undoubtedly noticed a lot of change since you arrived. Can you speak about how CNN has changed over time?

I was there when CNN got horrible ratings, got middling ratings, and got great ratings. I have run the gamut. The most fun has been in the last few years when we have had great ratings. Frankly, I owe that to [CNN Worldwide President] Jeff Zucker. He has been a great leader. He really has been. I think when he came to CNN it was the first time I actually understood what the network was all about. I understood our mission, and what he wanted. He’s a good leader and I think that has everything to do with the ratings success that CNN is enjoying now.

TVNewser: Now that you’re basically settled into your new LA stomping grounds…In-And-Out or Shake Shack?

Definitely In-And-Out because supposedly it’s healthier, although I honestly have my doubts!

]]>http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/carol-costello-is-back-and-shes-not-messing-around/338337/feed0MSNBC Was the No. 1 Cable Network on Wednesday Across Total Dayhttp://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/msnbc-was-the-no-1-cable-network-yesterday-across-total-day-a-network-first/338390
http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/msnbc-was-the-no-1-cable-network-yesterday-across-total-day-a-network-first/338390#respondThu, 17 Aug 2017 22:13:01 +0000http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/?p=338390Whenever President Trump finds himself embroiled in controversy, the cable news networks often see their significant ratings improvement. This has been especially true for MSNBC, which has become the resistance network for the Trump era.

MSNBC was nowhere close to being a player in the cable ratings race not too long ago, averaging just 579,000 prime time viewers in Q4 2015.

That’s not the case anymore, it finished Wednesday as No. 1 network across all of cable TV. Not only was MSNBC the most-watched cable network across total sales day (6 a.m. – 2 a.m.) for the first time in its history, but it also finished No. 1 in prime time, both in total viewers and among adults 25-54.

In addition to being No. 1 across total day and prime time, MSNBC was the No. 1 cable network across the 5 – 8 p.m. time period.

MSNBC beat rivals Fox News and CNN, who, to be fair, each had a pretty strong day in their own right.

Cable Ranker: Total Viewers (6 a.m. – 2 a.m.)

MSNBC was, per usual, led by Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O’Donnell. Their respective shows were No. 1 and No. 2 across cable on Wednesday in total audience.

Here’s how Maddow and O’Donnell compared with broadcast’s top Wednesday prime time series:

Prime Time Program Ranker: Total Viewers

Maddow ranked No. 6 and O’Donnell finished in 10th across all of U.S. TV yesterday, a rarity for the cable news network.

]]>http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/scoreboard-wednesday-august-16/338376/feed0Eboni K. Williams on Threats Against Her and the Future of Fox News Specialistshttp://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/eboni-k-williams-on-threats-against-her-and-the-future-of-fox-news-specialists/338274
http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/eboni-k-williams-on-threats-against-her-and-the-future-of-fox-news-specialists/338274#respondThu, 17 Aug 2017 16:50:56 +0000http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/?p=338274Fox News Specialists co-host Eboni K. Williams criticized President Trump Monday on the program for going two full days before explicitly denouncing white supremacists.

“Mr. President, your initial response was cowardly and dangerous, and they indeed warranted a second statement,” Williams said on-air. Those thoughts led to death threats against her from Fox News viewers.

On Tuesday, an hour before Pres. Trump walked back his comments from Monday, we talked to Williams about her criticism, as well as the current state of The Specialists with co-host Eric Bolling sidelined pending the outcome of a sexual harassment investigation into his conduct. We also talked about the possibility that Laura Ingraham will be joining FNC’s prime time lineup which would likely mean The Five moves back to 5 p.m., where The Specialists currently airs.

TVNewser: You made some pointed comments in response to Pres. Trump’s delayed condemnation of the neo-Nazi protesters who marched on Charlottesville. Many Fox News viewers and some on the far-right seem to be unhappy with you. How are you feeling at the moment?

Williams: Well in light of the rather intense responses, I’m feeling pensive yet really grateful that despite all of the blow back and negative backlash, I have been able to speak my truth and hopefully engage in a way that will be productive. I think that’s very important.

TVNewser: What have you heard about the future of Fox News Specialists?

Williams: I’m no mind reader. I have been told nothing. I know the investigation is ongoing and it’s being taken extremely seriously, I can tell you that much from the inside out. I am grateful for that it’s being taken seriously. Now, I can’t speak to what Fox News was before I started working there in a real capacity in September 2015, but I can tell you my experience since then has been positive in the sense that if there’s an issue, I personally can go to [Fox News human resources chief] Kevin Lord to have general conversation. I have not had complaints; that has not been my experience. But I am very comfortable going to Kevin Lord to have these dialogues and conversations about what I can personally do and what we can do at the network to make the environment safer and better for women, for people of color, for whoever might find it a challenging work environment because that’s something that cannot be the case. I think we all know being a network coming from [Rupert] Murdoch on down that there have been significant challenges that we have to eradicate. So that feels good.

Now I don’t know the status of The Specialists. All I can tell you is that I’m going to continue to show up and give a 1000% effort every hour because that’s what the audience deserves and that’s what I’m there for. So until I hear otherwise, I’m excited to go to work, and even on tough days like today where I got a lot of negative push back around my comments, it still feels like a privilege and a gift to be able to engage.

TVNewser: Have you heard anything about Laura Ingraham possibly getting her own show at the network?

Williams: No, I have not heard anything at all, internally. I have probably read the same things that you have, tweets from Drudge, and what have you. I can tell you that I’ve worked with Laura Ingraham a handful of times. She has been a guest on The Specialists. She used to fill in for [Bill] O’Reilly, and in my beginner days when I was just a guest on the network, I would be a guest on the show.

While we don’t have much political overlap, I can tell you that she has a brilliant legal mind and is a brilliant on-air talent. In my opinion, it would be a smart move by Fox to bring her on. I think she’s a powerful, female voice in a moment where frankly we can’t have enough of those.

Williams: First of all, I believe in innocence until proven guilty and I haven’t seen any specific evidence around this. But that’s just been my experience. But nothing really surprises me. I know Eric and appreciate him in a professional context and he has always been professional with me. That’s all I can speak to.

]]>http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/eboni-k-williams-on-threats-against-her-and-the-future-of-fox-news-specialists/338274/feed0Here Are The TV Network Plans For Covering the Total Solar Eclipsehttp://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/cnn-weather-channel-among-networks-to-deliver-comprehensive-coverage-of-great-american-eclipse/337329
http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/cnn-weather-channel-among-networks-to-deliver-comprehensive-coverage-of-great-american-eclipse/337329#respondThu, 17 Aug 2017 16:18:29 +0000http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/?p=337329The cable news and broadcast networks will briefly move away from coverage of Pres. Trump early next week to cover the highly-anticipated total solar eclipse, set to cross the continental U.S. Monday afternoon. Some networks have come up with unique cross-network and sponsorship partnerships for the celestial phenomenon, unimaginable the last time this happened in 1918.

CNN’s in-house branded content studio Courageous is producing live ads for the first time, sponsor Volvo.

“We’ve been intensely focused on experimenting with new creative formats and innovating with our marketing partners to help tell more powerful brand stories,” Turner’s svp of news content partnerships Michal Shapira told Adweek earlier this month. “Live ads are simply the next iteration of this effort, born from the fact that we live in a ‘live’ culture that values real-time experiences.”

CNN’s TV coverage of the solar eclipse will begin at 1 p.m. ET on Monday. CNN meteorologist Chad Myers will explain the science behind the solar eclipse while CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt will be in Oregon, Stephanie Elam in Missouri, Martin Savidge in Tennessee, and Kaylee Hartung in South Carolina.

“Our Total Solar Eclipse experience will span from live broadcasting across the country augmented reality technology in-studio, to sweepstakes for a once in a lifetime opportunity to experience the eclipse from 35,000 feet,” Nora Zimmett, Weather Channel’s svp of live programming, told Adweek.

The Weather Channel’s on-air talent will be stationed across the country. TWC meteorologist and host of AMHQ Jen Carfagno says that while covering an eclipse is different than covering a storm, TWC viewers should expect the same compelling and useful coverage their used to.

“You might consider this eclipse a ‘storm cloud shadow’ so to speak, moving across the country but in a very visual and emotional way for many people,” Carfagno told TVNewser. “I think we have already connected with our viewers that we can be there for them in times of bad weather, and now in times of good and ‘unique’ weather.”

Shepard Smith will anchor FNC’s live coverage from 12 – 4 p.m. ET from the Fox News Deck along with senior meteorologist Janice Dean, as well as correspondents Dan Springer in Oregon, Matt Finn in Illinois, and Jonathan Serrie and Adam Housley in South Carolina.

NBC News kicks off its eclipse coverage on the Today show with Al Roker reporting live from the deck of the USS Yorktown in Charleston, S.C. Lester Holt anchors an NBC News special report in the 1 and 2 p.m. ET hours, and will be joined by NBC News meteorologist Dylan Dreyer, and NBC News medical correspondent Dr. John Torres, who will be reporting on safety factors that are associated with the eclipse. On NBC and MSNBC expect reports from Tom Costello, Kerry Sanders, Jacob Soboroff, Mariana Atencio, and Gadi Schwartz fanned out across the country.

CBS News coverage begins on CBS This Morning. Anthony Mason will anchor a 2-hour afternoon special report as well as the Evening News from Carbondale, IL. Mason’s guests include astronaut Scott Kelly and astronomer Derrick Pitts. CBS News correspondent Adriana Diaz will also be in Carbondale, along with David Begnaud in Nashville, Jeff Glor in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Mark Strassmann in Charleston, and Jamie Yuccas in Madras, Oregon. CBS News space consultant Bill Harwood will contribute. CBSN will be streaming coverage starting at Noon ET.

Additionally, multiple national news networks will be using Facebook Live to broadcast from areas along the path of totality in the U.S. From approximately 1 p.m. EST to 2:20 p.m. EST.

NBC News: Using FB Live to capture the location of the eclipse view across a map of the US, side-by-side with a shot of the actual eclipse next to it. Will go live at 1pm ET from NBC News’ Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/NBCNews/)

Rascon has been with NBC News since 2014, joining from KNBC in Los Angeles. Rascon will be working in his hometown, and, in a sense, competing with his fatherArt Rascon who is an anchor at Houston’s ABC affiliate KTRK.

A return to local news reporting and anchoring will be much easier on Rascon’s family, than being a network news correspondent which requires constant travel. Rascon and his wife have four children under age 5.

]]>http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/jacob-rascon-leaves-nbc-news-for-nbc-affiliate/338234/feed0Here’s How NBC News Got the Much-Shared Video of Chief of Staff Kelly at Trump Newserhttp://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/heres-how-nbc-news-got-the-much-shared-video-of-chief-of-staff-kelly-at-trump-newser/338219
http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/heres-how-nbc-news-got-the-much-shared-video-of-chief-of-staff-kelly-at-trump-newser/338219#respondWed, 16 Aug 2017 23:24:04 +0000http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/?p=338219There were plenty of cameras trained on Pres. Trump during his news conference in his Tower Tuesday. But NBC News wisely had one of its cameras focused on someone else standing in the wings: Trump’s new chief of staff John Kelly with is arms crossed, head down.

Quick-thinking NBC News photographer Andrew Scritchfield (who goes by ‘Scritch’ in the D.C. bureau) noticed Kelly’s reaction and focused his camera on it for more than 90 seconds as senior White House producer Kristin Donnellytook photos and videos of her own.

Scritchfield’s video was seen across NBC News platforms, and other networks as well late Tuesday and into this morning.

WATCH: White House chief of staff John Kelly reacts to President Trump's latest remarks on violence in Charlottesville, Virginia. pic.twitter.com/kPWNauDJcl

“Our booking team — and they’re good — reached out to Republicans of all stripes, across the country today,” said Smith. “Let’s be honest, Republicans often don’t really mind coming on Fox News Channel. We couldn’t get anyone to come and defend him here. We worked very hard at it throughout the day, and we were unsuccessful.

A couple hours later, on his MSNBC show, Chuck Todd said his team spent much of the day trying to book members of the the GOP, to no avail.

“We invited every single Republican senator on this program tonight. All fifty-two. We asked roughly a dozen House Republicans, including a bunch of committee chairs, and we asked roughly a half-dozen former Republican elected officials,” said Todd. “None of them agreed to discuss this issue with us today.”